The present disclosure relates to firearm training and more particularly to devices, systems and methods for use with a firearm, firearm simulator, or a firearm replica, or other shooting devices, for detecting motion of a firearm body during training.
A firearm operator typically provides at least two types of input when operating a firearm. First, the operator generally aims the firearm at a target. Second, the operator typically pulls the firearm trigger using a single finger of the user's hand, thereby activating a firing mechanism in the firearm to discharge one or more projectiles from the firearm barrel toward the target. In some applications, a third type of user input includes applying force to stabilize the firearm to keep the firearm steady before and during the trigger pull, to control recoil, and further to reacquire a target after taking one or more shots.
In many applications, both during training and during live fire of a firearm, it is desirable to maintain a steady orientation of a firearm, firearm simulator or firearm replica to achieve accuracy when firing live or simulated rounds at a target. Thus, users of firearms, firearm simulators and/or firearm replicas, and other shooting devices such as bows, air guns, etc. desire to be able to maintain a steady aim at a target. Steady aim may be achieved by practicing firing a firearm. Conventional diagnostics for training steadiness of aim, recoil control, and target acquisition typically include live firing at a target, and then monitoring accuracy based on observation of target impact locations. However, such conventional diagnostics are typically inadequate for determining steadiness, recoil control, or target acquisition performance because many factors may contribute to variance in impact location on targets, and it is often difficult to correlate target impact location variance with various causes.
What is needed, then are improvements in devices, systems and methods for allowing users to monitor steadiness of a firearm, firearm simulator or firearm replica for training or other purposes.